


For the act

by OrChan12



Series: Tsukkiyama week 2020 [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Idiots in Love, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Tsukkiyama Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:08:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26064745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrChan12/pseuds/OrChan12
Summary: To get a scholarship, Tadashi finds himself volunteering with LGBT youth. His friends want to meet Tsuki, whom he never stops takling about, mistaking him as Tadashi's boyfriend.Tsuki agrees to pretend to be Tadashi's romantic partner, but are they truely faking it?
Relationships: Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Series: Tsukkiyama week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1892140
Comments: 8
Kudos: 51
Collections: TsukkiYama Week 2020





	For the act

**Author's Note:**

> This is based on scholarships that pay for valunteering (which I guess is the opposite of volunteering, but students need to make money somehow). In my country it's fairly normal and some scholarship are intended for a certain population.  
> I had a similar one, just not specific towards LGTBQA+ community.
> 
> Special thank to lumenera for being my beta!

"So, what are you?" asked the guy in front of him.

"Sorry, what?" Tadashi was taken aback. .

"You applied for our scholarship, so I just wondered, what are you? You seem like a nice guy, but we take this seriously. There is a reason why we give this scholarship to certain people."

Tadashi knew what the man meant. He had tried applying to several scholarships, but he was turned down by many. Feeling hopeless, he found one that might accept him. It didn't demand much work except volunteering once every two weeks. The catch? It was meant for the LGTBQA+ community. It was meant to encourage youth to become open in an old fashioned country and help them find a place they could feel safe.

He could work with that.

"I'm bi," Tadashi said out loud. He wondered why saying made him feel relieved. He managed saying that with much more confidence than he expected.

"That's great. Feels great to say that, doesn't it?"

"That's the first time I’ve said it out loud." It wasn't a lie.

Tadashi had no idea how many people out there who hid in a closet. He always imagined that there were a few LGTBQA+, but then he learned about the full spectrum of peoples' sexuality and gender. Volunteering with the younger members of the community, he got to see more sides of people. He made friends with most of the other volunteers, and the teenagers liked him. He brought the idea of making their own volleyball teams, and he taught the game. He was ready to make extra time specifically for the eager ones who wanted to join a team in their school.

At one of the sessions, Kirishima, a tall teen, approached him. "Please, teach me how to serve," he stuttered, his face bright red.

" Your serve is already good,” Tadashi said encouragingly. “Aren't you a middle blocker? You have the height for it."

"Height alone won't help making it to the court. Also," he stopped, and his face reddened even more. He was lost at words.A friend of his came tohis help.

"He just wants _you_ to teach him." For some reason, they winked at Kirishima, who seemed to be embarrassed by the gesture.

Another girl, half Japanese with darker coloring, "Ever since you showed us your serve, Kiri-chan can't stop talking about it."

"I just think learning to jump float serve will be good for me," Kirishima immediately said. "Not that I care about being a middle blocker, I play in that position because of my height."

Tadashi giggled. "I don't mind teaching, but your height is definitely an advantage. You kind of remind me of Tsukki. He was always tall, and he got to play. He thought he didn't care about the game, but I put some sense into him." At this point, everyone had heard of his childhood friend, Tsukishima Kei. Tadashi liked to brag about his friend, even as an adult.

"You did mention your boyfriend played in the same team as you," the girl said.

That caught him off guard. "My boyfriend?"

"You always talk about him the same way everyone else talks about their partner, we all figured out that this Tsukki is your boyfriend."

Oh no, this couldnt’be right. "You kids should go back, I need to…" He looked around the room for a quick excuse. His eyes landed on two of his co-workers who seemed to have a deep conversation. "… Help Suzuki and Himura. Sorry."

He moved away as quickly as he could to a short woman and a tanned man. The pair seemed confused about his sudden appearance. The woman was holding an open package of Pocky. "Hey, Yamaguchi-kun. I thought you were playing volleyball with the kids." She offered him a snack.

"Suzuki-san, you're the best," he said as he took the offer. "The kids were saying odd stuff, so I ran away."

"Did you talk about Tsukki again?" said Himura, who looked amused. "Your face says it all."

He could tell them it was a misunderstanding. "Here is the-"

"You should bring him next time!" Suzuki suggested. "The other students would love to meet him."

"But this is just us, he would feel like he doesn't belong. I mean, us the students already hang out together." Also, he might have skipped the details concerning the scholarship.

"Don’t be like this. You talk about him so much; we want to know your significant other. Besides, Himura and I also bring our girlfriends."

Himura nodded. "Yeah, everyone can bring their partners to our gatherings, so you can too. Besides, we’re gathering outside the scholarship, as friends."

"Don't you see us as friends, Yamaguchi-kun?"

They both stared at him with puppy eyes. He hated saying no to them. "I'll ask him, but I don't make any promises. Tsukki isn't sociable."

His friends cheered as he was trying to figure out how it ended up like this.

The blond in front of him looked angry. "Yamaguchi, is everything okay?"

"Yes." Itwasn't. They met up at a local izakaya, one that was usually empty on weekdays.

Tsukishima didn't buy it. "You're awfully quiet tonight. It's unsettling."

Tadashi sighed. "Remember the scholarship I mentioned before?"

"The one where you volunteer with the teenagers … and I don't know what you do with them."

"It’s some sort of club, more like a safe place, designed for LGTBQA+ youth. I had to tell them I'm bi so I could get in."

After a moment of silence, Tsukishima decided to break it. "Okay, what about that?" He took a sip of his beer..

"Sometimes I tell them stories, including about you. They accidentally mistook you for my boyfriend."

Tsukishima spit out the drink, his eyes wide open with shock. "What do you mean?"

"This place runs mainly on donations, which isn't a lot. Some of them are bullied, and we have one teen who was kicked out of their house. Those kids need an adult who would believe in them. You know, since some of them are into volleyball, so I convinced Hinata to give them-"

"That's not what I meant, and you know that," Tsukishima interrupted him.

"Okay, fine, some of my friends want to meet you. Please Tsukki," Tadashi begged, "I need this. We don't have to kiss or even hold hands."

It was a short moment of silence, but for Tadashi it felt like forever. His heart was beating fast in his chest, his palms were sweaty, and his throat felt dry.

"Fine, I'll do it."

Tadashi couldn't be happier. "Thank you, Tsukki!"

"But I don't promise I'll be nice."

"Don't worry, they already know."

The pair walked to the safehouse. On their way, Yamaguchi talked about his new friends and how cool they were. Kei wasn't surprised his friend was popular. He was not only cool, but one of the nicest people who ever lived. It's a shame he only became popular in high school once he became captain.

When they walked in, everyone greeted Yamaguchi with a smile, as if they were waiting for him all week long. A Bunch of kids gathered around them, asking many questions. They were as diverse as Tadashi described, with some of the kids part or not Japanese. Some kids felt comfortable wearing clothes of the other gender. They all had different heights and weights. This place was for them to feel comfortable being who they were, also with aspects other than gender and sexuality. Yamaguchi was perfect for the job.

A short woman wearing glasses came for their rescue. "Give them air to breathe, kids. Go warm up while the adults are talking. You'll have plenty of time for questions later."

Dissatisfied, the teenagers obeyed. She led them to a table with snacks and drinks. "Feel welcome to grab anything you'd like."

"Thank you, Suzuki-chan," said Yamaguchi with a smile.

She held out her hand. "It's nice finally meeting you. I'm Suzuki Mitsuki," she gestured at the dark skinned man who grabbed a cookie, "And this Himura Kouki."

He shook her hand and then Himura's. "I'm Tsukishima Kei. Nice to meet you."

"Tsukki, you are so polite," said Himura.

Kei frowned. "Please don't call me Tsukki."

"Reserved only for your boyfriend?"

Kei felt like he was called out.

"Don't act like he is your friend, you just met him," Suzuki scolded him. "I bet the other kids would have so many questions for you, so don't be surprised. Also, feel free to show affection as much as you're comfortable with. Some couples are passionate in public, but some are more reserved."

"Don't worry about that, we prefer to keep it down in public," said Yamaguchi with a red face.

"There is much more that can be done in private," Kei said. He tried to keep his cool, blurting something so ridiculous. It wasn't a complete lie. There are some couple of things that couples couldn't do in public. Not that he and Yamaguchi were a couple.

"Tsukki," Yamaguchi cried, but he knew it was fake. .

His friends seemed to enjoy this moment. Then, Yamaguchi grabbed his hand, as a part of an act. "Let's go teach kids volleyball, shall we?"

"Yes, babe," Kei teased as a part of the act. If he had to pretend to date Yamaguchi, he might as well have fun with it.

The kids were as curious as Suzuki mentioned. Yamaguchi was like a star in this place, so naturally Keiwas too. There was one tall kid who glared at him of whom Kei decided to dislike.

When the kids gathered around the two again, Yamaguchi tried to escape, but Kei pulled him closer.

"Don't leave me alone for this." he said, while giving him the 'you are the one who put me in this mess' face.

Kei kept his arms around Yamaguchi, who didn't mind. They were good at this.

Suzuki and Himura looked at the couple as kids shot questions towards them. Suzuki was fascinated with the couple. It was possible to know only from Yamaguchi's words, but looking at them, it was so easy to see they were in love. "I always thought Yamaguchi-kun was the one in love, but Tsukishima is definitely the one with the heart eyes."

"Is it just me, or they are acting like they are pretending to be not a couple who has to pretend they are dating?"

"Oh, they are faking it." When Himura raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "I had a feeling Yamaguchi was lying, that he is in love with his friend but hasen't told him. I just thought he would deny it or make excuses. Seems like Tsukishima was on board."

"A little too on board. Do they know they aren’t faking it, or should we tell them?"

"Let them figure out by themselves." 

The pair made jokes about the oblivious couple.

Tadashi was glad that Tsukishima played along. He put his arm around Tadashi, if which the guy didn't let go, for the act.

"You are the cool type, Tsukki," said one of the kids.

Before Tsukishima could say anything, Tadashi wrapped his arms around the tall man. "I'm the only one who gets to call him that." That one wasn't an act; he was possessive over that nickname. Only at this point they were really close together.

"Also, Yamaguchi is much cooler," said Tsukishima.

"Yamaguchi-sensei is the best!" yelled a random kid; everyone around him seemed to agree.

"You guys should have seen him in our third year of high school, when he was the captain. He was the reason we won the third place in nationals.," Tadashi said proudly.

"So, the third year was the time you two started dating?"

"How did you meet?"

"Who was the one to confess first?"

Why did these kids care so much? "We met in elementary school when Tsukki saved me from bullies. He is the reason I'm playing volleyball." For the act, he added, "We only started dating at our… second year of high school. But I admired him all this time."

Tsukishima played along. "Only in high school I started to realize how much Yamaguchi meant to me. It took me a while, but I confessed. I knew I wanted him in my life every day." They stared at each other and smiled, for the act. Tadashi thought it would be great to add a kiss at that moment, for the act.

The kids were moved.

"I wish I was lucky with girls."

"Maybe someday I'll also find a partner."

"You too are sweet, but I still don't care about romance or sex."

"Maybe there is a man or a woman for me out there."

"I also want a partner, one who wouldn't want sex. I hope they are out there."

The couple blushed and pulled away from one another. Tadashi found it hard to let go of his friend. "Okay, we’ve been chatting too much. We have a practice!"

After the practice, the grown ups cleaned the place. As Kei was picking up the trash, Himura approached to help him. "Did you have fun today?"

"Being with kids is more for Yamaguchi than I," he admitted.

"Well they like him a lot. He gives extra hours for them. He is a good man. Don’t screw this up."

"Wouldn't dream of it." They had been putting on great act. People around them bought the lie. If there was one person he was ready to fake-date with, it was Yamaguchi.

They threw away the trash and went back inside. "Okay, we’re free to go. Thank you everyone for their hard work. Oh, before I forget, next week, we’regathering for karaoke. Would you like to join, Tsukishima-san?"

Yamaguchi looked hopeful. "You have an amazing voice, Tsukki. You should come."

"Sure, why not."

They said goodbye and walked outside together. They only needed to act a little bit longer.

"We should hold hands," suggested Yamaguchi. "At least, until we are out of Suzuki and Himura's sight."

They were already far away enough for not to be seen; he was pretty sure the pair wouldn't be creepy.

"You're right," he found himself saying automatically, "For the act."

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it and feel free to leave a comment^^


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